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Original Article |
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Neuropsychopharmacology (1998) 18 10-17.10.1038/sj.npp.1395072
Serotonin Function and Risk for Alcoholism in Boys with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Kurt P Schulz1 MA, Kathleen E McKay2 MD, Jeffrey H Newcorn2 MD, Vanshdeep Sharma2 MD, Stephen Gabriel2 Ph.D and Jeffrey M Halperin1,3 Ph.D |
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1Department of Psychology, Neuropsychology Sub-Program, Graduate School and University Center, City University of New York
2Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York
3Department of Psychology, Queens College of the City University of New York, New York
Correspondence: Dr Jeffrey M Halperin, Department of Psychology, Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, NY, 11367
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ABSTRACT
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Data in animals and adults indicate that central serotonergic (5-HT) function may be involved in the development of alcohol abuse. Despite this, studies exploring this mechanism in individuals at risk for alcoholism are scant. This study used a fenfluramine (FEN) challenge procedure to investigate the relationship between risk for alcoholism and 5-HT function in 7- to 11-year-old boys with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The prolactin (PRL) and cortisol (CORT) responses to FEN were examined in 10 sons of alcoholic fathers (FA+) and 30 sons of nonalcoholic fathers (FA-). The FA+ group had a significantly greater CORT, but not PRL, response to FEN relative to the FA- group. The discrepancy between the CORT and PRL responses may be due to the different mechanisms that underlie their 5-HT stimulated release. This suggests that, among ADHD boys, those at familial risk for alcohol abuse may differ from those who are not at risk in 5-HT function.
Keywords: Serotonin; Alcoholism; Children; Fenfluramine; ADHD |
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